This takes power purchase agreements out of the equation and requires that all solar installation costs be paid upfront or with a loan, which typically requires a significant down payment and a higher interest rate. The rule is contained in the net metering service rider within the public entities’ electricity tariff and contains two main obstacles to solar development, according to Coman.įirst, the rule specifies that the public ratepayers in Appalachian Power territory must both “own and operate” the solar array.
Appalachian power install#
Photo: Solar Workgroup of SWVAFor schools and municipalities in Appalachian Power’s Virginia service area, however, a rule buried in the monopoly utility’s contract with government entities like towns and schools is making it difficult to install solar panels. “During the summertime, when a school isn’t using its lights and it’s empty, it’s actually generating electricity and putting it onto the grid and getting compensated for it - and that rolls over onto the bills during the school year,” says Coman.Īppalachian Voices’ Adam Wells, front, at a June Solar Workgroup of Southwest Virginia meeting. This saves the school money on their utility bills and allows the solar developer to recoup the costs of the array over time.Īttorney Hannah Coman with the Southern Environmental Law Center, a nonprofit law firm, states that solar is an especially great opportunity for schools to lower their utility costs. The school system’s solar array was made possible through a power purchase agreement, where a third party investor working with an installer such as Sun Tribe Solar pays the upfront and maintenance costs for a solar array and then sells the power generated by the system to the customer at a lower rate than a utility would charge. The installation is expected to save the school district roughly $4.74 million over 25 years. A second solar array to power the system’s high school was completed this summer - making it the first school district in the country to be powered by 100 percent clean energy, according to solar installer Sun Tribe Solar.
In August 2018, Virginia’s Middlesex County Public Schools flipped the switch on a 1-megawatt solar array to power its middle and elementary schools. These programs let you TakeCharge of your energy use.Ridgeview High School uses a small solar array on their greenhouse to teach students.
Appalachian power free#
TakeCharge West Virginia is Appalachian Power’s way of bringing its energy efficiency programs together in one convenient place, offering free assessments, incentive programs and rebates for your home or business. For more information, see our corporate website, AEP.com. AEP's headquarters are in Columbus, Ohio. AEP's utility units operate as AEP Ohio, AEP Texas, Appalachian Power (in Virginia and West Virginia), AEP Appalachian Power (in Tennessee), Indiana Michigan Power, Kentucky Power, Public Service Company of Oklahoma and Southwestern Electric Power Company (in Arkansas, Louisiana and east Texas). states and eastern Canada, and approximately 11 percent of the electricity demand in ERCOT, the transmission system that covers much of Texas. AEP's transmission system directly or indirectly serves about 10 percent of the electricity demand in the Eastern Interconnection, the interconnected transmission system that covers 38 eastern and central U.S. AEP also owns the nation's largest electricity transmission system, a nearly 39,000-mile network that includes more 765 kilovolt extra-high voltage transmission lines than all other U.S. AEP ranks among the nation's largest generators of electricity, owning nearly 32,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the U.S. Appalachian Power is part of the American Electric Power system, one of the largest electric utilities in the United States, delivering electricity to more than 5 million customers in 11 states. with regulatory and external affairs offices in both Charleston, W.Va. Appalachian Power serves about 1 million customers in West Virginia, Virginia and Tennessee.
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